Sunday, February 15, 2009

Avoid Problems - Use this simple Food Preparation Checklist

By Malcolm J. Richmond

If you run a restaurant or kitchen of any sort in Melbourne, you already know that it is a tough town when it comes to food standards and restaurant reputation. You will find that there are number of things that can sink a restaurant in Victoria, but nothing will shut a business down faster than sanitation violations. If it is discovered that your restaurant has health violations, you can watch your business drop like a rock.

You must always take every precaution to maintain the high standards of cleanliness in your kitchen. Although this is not a complete list, here are several worthwhile suggestions that can aid you in operating your kitchen in accordance with the highest sanitary standards.

Store cooked and uncooked food separately. This is essential when you are looking at making sure that your restaurant has a high degree of sanitation. Essentially, cooked food very often goes directly to the tables of your diners. Raw food, which is uncooked and untreated, may very well still be carrying bacteria or other contaminants that can be transferred to the cooked food. By keeping them separate, you'll be able to keep them from affecting each other.

Always label anything that comes into your kitchen. Labelling everything that comes into your kitchen is essential. Doing so can help your kitchen staff to know what types of foods are in various containers. This will help your staff to cut down on unnecessarily opening containers that they are not using. This will also help you cut down on contamination owing to exposure.

Labelling all the containers will improve the efficiency and production speed of your kitchen. You may also consider dating everything that comes into your kitchen so that you are able to maintain all your foods as good and nutritious for future use.

Temperature readouts. No matter where you keep food, you should make sure that there is a temperature gauge nearby. This can be instrumental when you are keeping cold foods and when you want to make sure that they stay good.

Take some time and really consider what your options are going to be when it comes to installing thermometers in your food storage location; this can help you a great deal.

Mini lectures and meetings are important to keep your staff knowledgeable and on their toes. Keep in mind that your staff play a major role in keeping your restaurant maintained and sanitized. This is sometimes difficult in kitchens with a high turn around rate; you must make sure that all staff are always aware of what they need to do to maintain the high standards of your kitchen. It is important to educate everyone on your kitchen staff as well as your front room staff.

Cleanliness and the safety of staff and diners should be at the forefront of every person's mind who runs a commercial kitchen or restaurant. Make sure your staff are well educated and that every person is pulling his or her weight. You may also want to consider hiring professional services that can aid you in monitoring your existing procedures as well as providing you with a detailed list of those things you can improve. A small investment here could save you significant hassles in the future. Pay some attention to your food procedures and be on the lookout for sloppiness. Do this effectively and avoid messy legal dramas.

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